Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how G van Staden (“we”, “us”, “our”), the operator of connectthebloodydots.com (the “Website”), collects, uses and protects your personal information. We are committed to processing your information lawfully and transparently in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 4 of 2013 (POPIA).

1. Information We Collect

• Order details: your name and email address when you buy the Book.
• Newsletter sign-ups: your email address (and name, if provided) if you choose to be notified about new books.
• Contact messages: the name, email and message you submit through our Contact page.
• Payment information: handled entirely by PayFast. We do not collect or store your card or banking details.
• Technical data: limited server logs (such as the time of a download) used to deliver and secure your purchase.

2. How We Use Your Information

• To process your order and deliver your download link.
• To provide support and respond to your enquiries.
• To send you new-book announcements only if you opted in.
• To keep records of sales and to detect and prevent fraud or abuse.

3. Legal Basis / Consent

We process your information to fulfil our contract with you (delivering the Book you purchased), to comply with our legal obligations, and — for marketing emails — on the basis of your consent, which you may withdraw at any time.

4. Who We Share It With

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only with trusted service providers who help us operate, namely:

• PayFast — to process payments securely;
• Hostinger — for website hosting and email delivery.

These providers process your information on our behalf and are required to protect it. We may also disclose information where required by law.

5. Marketing & Unsubscribing

If you opted in to new-book updates, every email we send includes a one-click unsubscribe link. You can opt out at any time, and we will stop sending you marketing emails.

6. Data Retention

We keep order records for as long as necessary to fulfil our obligations and to meet legal, accounting and tax requirements. Newsletter details are kept until you unsubscribe. You may request deletion of your information at any time (see your rights below).

7. Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your information, including serving the Website over a secure (HTTPS) connection, keeping the Book behind a protected download system, and restricting access to our records. No method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, however, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Cookies & Third-Party Services

The Website uses minimal cookies (for example, a session cookie in the private admin area). The Website loads fonts from Google Fonts, which may involve a request to Google’s servers. We do not use these for advertising or tracking.

9. Your Rights Under POPIA

You have the right to:

• request access to the personal information we hold about you;
• request that we correct or delete your information;
• object to the processing of your information;
• withdraw consent to marketing at any time; and
• lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (South Africa).

To exercise any of these rights, contact us via our Contact page or the details below.

10. Children

The Website is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children without appropriate consent.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. The current version is always the one published on this page, with the “last updated” date shown above.

12. Contact & Information Officer

For any privacy questions or requests, contact our Information Officer:

Email: sales@connectthebloodydots.com

Information Regulator (South Africa): inforegulator.org.za